‘Vygotsky’s Neglected Legacy’: Cultural-Hisrorical Activity Theory

Wollf-Micheal RothUniversity of Victoria

Yew-Jin Lee National Institute of Education, Singapore

‘Vygotsky’s Neglected Legacy’: Cultural-Hisrorical Activity Theory

Presented by: Fresenay MiskerJanuary 25, 2011

What is in A CHAT?

What was wrong in the outlook of Educational Psychology regarding learning theory in Vygotisk’s time?

Is it addressed today?

What is in A CHAT?

In his time Vygotisk’s thought educational Psychology was in a crises due to: Functionalist model of thought analysis that is

separation of intellect and affect. Model of autonomous thought process Isolated from:

The “fullness of life” Personal need and interest Inclination and impulses of the thinker

What is in A CHAT?

Vygotsk’s approch to knowing and learning: Knowing and learning in and out of school and

across the life span (holistic approach)

The case of Katherine (Direct Teaching)

• 5th grade teacher in rural district• She thought these students previous grade• Some students have difficulty in English language

and language of science• They like hands on activity• She is planning Introductory lesson on electrical

circuits.• She feels the model lesson plan in teachers guide

is ineffective if not a turn off

The case of Katherine

• She thought to give them lots of time to explore in small groups to set up the two circuit and learn concept current flow at the same time. But due to increased accountability by the school board

• Opt for direct teaching by reasoning:– Economy of instructional time– Assurance of mastery learning– Higher achievement scores

The case of Katherine

• Some faces get gloomy• Katherine feels bad as well.

• Why is Katherine feels bad? What is lacking?• What can help her situation?

The case of Katherine

• The contradiction arising from personal experience and professional sense of what is best with the generic statements about what to achieve and how to best attain it.

• She lacks the theoretical tools to help her:– Learning an expansion of one’s possibilities is a by-

product of the pursuit of motives and goals.– When children choose the motives of activity the

also become emotionally involved.

The case of Katherine

• She also lacks the capacity…– Language or the utterance students make is a means

to mediate the concrete realization of the goals the children's set for themselves during exploration tasks.

She doesn’t have a holistic theory of practical activity consistent with her professional life.

She doesn’t know she is a member of Historically situated educational community. Knowing this would have helped her greatly and boost her confidence.

Contradiction observed(for discussion)

• Theory-praxis gap.• Tension between epistemological and

ontological aspects of human development.• The deference between decontextualized and

embodied knowledge.• Apparent disjunction between individual

learners and with other learners and their social environments.

Learning by Participating in Legitimate Activity

(Environmentalism CHAT Based Curriculum)

Learning by Participating in Legitimate Activity

• The teacher introduced the about the state of the their Creek and general understanding of the environment taken from local news paper.– Asked the students what can they do about it?

I. Students motivated started brainstorming and came up with ideas such as:– Cleaning up documenting the litter.

II. Exploratory field trip accompanied by:

Learning by Participating in Legitimate Activity

ParentsEnvironmentalistsBiologistsWater techniciansFirst Nation elders

III. Every field trip every other week (whole afternoon) students enjoy a relative freedom of design the

problem and implementation.

Learning by Participating in Legitimate Activity

Some collected specimens along the River and measured speed of water at the same time.

Some measured depth of the river and speed of the river.

Some collected specimens nearby area of the Creek

Some videotaped and accompanied it by narration.

Learning by Participating in Legitimate Activity

IV. School lessons were accompanied by: Discussion Analysing data collected in the field trip One groups problem becomes common topic

for the class mediated by the teacher. V. Open-house event (organized by the

environmentalists)

Learning by Participating in Legitimate Activity

V. Open-house event (organized by the environmentalists) consists of: School children's Visitors Parents community

Activities:

Learning by Participating in Legitimate Activity

Activities: Students participate in explaining the

environmental activity they partook to the visitors of the Open-house show.

They are showing their product distributing their learning and products back to the community.

Learning by Participating in Legitimate Activity

VI. Credits: Students were credited by the

environmentalists for bringing everybody together for the show.

Local news paper documented their contribution to the society.

Also Web site documentation of their learning and acting were posted.

summary (The CHAT approach)

Students chosen their activity.(generating knowledge and saving the Creek)Students chosen the means by which they want

to represent it. They enact on collectively defined activity in

their municipality. (doing environmentalism) Reintroduction of products back in to the

community. (actions and learning's)

summary(The CHAT approach)

Where they become new social and material resources for furthering the learnings of others including:

environmentalists Parents and children Identities of children changed from school students to

young citizens enacting concern for the environmental health of their community.

VII. Special Case (Davie) ‘knowledge depends on settings not someone's inherent

behaviour’.

comparison

Direct Teaching• Text book direct

teaching• [Individual learning at

the heart of it]• [Learning as simply an

isolated phenomenon].

Learning by participating in Legitimate Activity(CHAT)

Collective provides opportunity for learning

Out come of the activity cannot be understood without mediating elements. (environmentalism as a whole and each action that contribute to it.

[Cooperative learning is at the heart of it].

THANK YOU